Several Republican senators have expressed doubts in terms of the Trump administration to accept a Qatari jet for the president To finally use as Air Force Onenoting the potential for security and legal risks.
Texas senator John Cornyn CNN said he assumes that President Donald Trump had “good legal advice” so that he is not worried about the constitutionality of accepting the free plane, but he added: “I have concerns about security problems, even if it was built by Boeing, and it is now in San Antonio, my hometown.”
“I just know that our opponents are creative enough to plant all kinds of registration devices and other sensors. So I would be very concerned about this,” he said.
South South Senator Mike RoundsMember of the Senate Intelligence Committee, compared the jet to a Trojan horse.
“This plane is magnificent, and it would be great if we could accept it, but the security problems are also there,” he said.
When he was pressed if the jet would violate the clause of foreign emoluments of the Constitution, which prohibits foreign payments to an in -office president, The senator from Alaska Lisa Murkowski Said “I think that is exactly the question that must be asked, to determine if it is a violation.”
She said, “When you get something of this value of a country, we generally think that there is something for the country that offers it. I therefore think there are certainly a lot of questions.”
In the meantime, Leader of the majority of the Senate John Thune continued to minimize the potential use of a Qatari jet for Air Force One as “hypothetical”, but insisted that there will be “a lot of control” if the plan takes place.
Mike Johnson room president Also weighed on the Qatari jet, saying Trump should “make careful control of security problems.” He added that the gift was not unconstitutional because it is “indeed a gift in the United States, not to the president as an individual”.
This message has been updated with additional details.